Open house pick of the week: Waialae Nui Ridge

By Melissa Chang

Published: 2012.12.21 09:56 AM

All photos courtesy of Century 21 Kailua Beach Realty

East Honolulu has some of the most desirable ridges on which to live: Hawaii Loa, Waialae Iki, and Waialae Nui. Of these, Waialae Nui is the most dated, but it’s probably the most convenient, due to its proximity to metro Honolulu.

Since the homes on Waialae Nui tend to be older, it’s rare to find a newer place here. This listing is one of those rare finds. (Click here for details.) It was built in 1972, but the current owner is a contractor, so he went through the whole house in 2010 and completely redid it—including truckloads of concrete to strengthen the foundation.

In August, he listed it for sale, and it went into escrow after its first brokers’ open. The buyers went through the inspection and found about $40,000 worth of repairs they wanted to do, so they backed out. The owner went back to the drawing board and did all the additional repairs, so it’s now in mint condition. It’s now back on the market, and open this Sunday.

The 3,798-square-foot residence has two levels: The top floor has three bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms, plus potential maid's/nanny quarters. The bottom floor has one bedroom and a full bathroom with a nice kitchen and a separate entrance. Both kitchens have granite islands.

The house is nice, but the real selling point is the view, since this is high on the ridge. The home has big picture windows, and two huge lanais—more like gigantic decks—to give you sweeping views of the valley, Portlock, neighbor islands, Koko head, and directly out to the ocean, from practically anywhere in the house.

This home will be open on Sunday from 2 to 5 p.m. Happy house hunting!